'Hallo Spaceboy': Bowie's Oddity a space odyssey for astronaut Chris

If anyone were qualified to cover David Bowie's Space Oddity it would surely be astronaut Chris Hadfield.

Which is exactly what the mustachioed Canadian has done, recording a showstopping rendition of the classic tune on board the International Space Station as he prepares to descend back to Earth this week after a five-month mission in space.

Hadfield, who has been referred to as the "coolest guy in outer space", has outdone himself in his latest stunt among the stars, posting a five-minute clip on YouTube in which he performs the 1969 classic.

The clip shows the 53-year-old veteran astronaut spinning around the cabin of the space station and playing his guitar while floating in zero gravity.

He sings "I'm floating in a most peculiar way", while floating in zero gravity. Stunning views of the earth are visible from the space station's windows for much of the clip.

Hadfield's efforts have earned him the adoration of the internet, and the praise of Bowie himself, who tweeted "Hallo Spaceboy . . ."

One of Hadfield's fans commented on the YouTube clip: "You're a bloody marvellous human being."

"NASA might be cool again," wrote another fan, while one person said they cried while watching the clip, adding: "I want to be a SCIENTIST".

The film clip was mixed with the help of staff at the Canadian Space Agency and musician Emm Gryner, and some of the lyrics were modified to refer to the Soyuz capsule that will return Hadfield to Kazakhstan on Monday night.

Hadfield tweeted a link to the video with the words: "With deference to the genius of David Bowie, here's Space Oddity, recorded on Station. A last glimpse of the World."

It was retweeted nearly 9000 times in the first four hours.

During his stint as commander of the International Space Station, Hadfield has captivated and entertained his followers on social media with quirky videos and stunning photographs from space.

He has posted charming videos about sleeping, eating, safely clipping his fingernails, and even cooking spinach.

Half a million people tuned in to watch him brush his teeth, while more than 10 million people watched Hadfield wring out a soaking wet cloth. It was an experiment suggested by 10th graders in Nova Scotia.

He has also posted daily photographs and tweets from space, including images of the Great Barrier Reef and Sydney, in which he highlighted unique land formations, weather events and the glittering lights that mark out human development.

Hadfield handed over command of the station on Sunday to Russian cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov.

He and his two crew members are scheduled to leave the space station on Monday night in their Soyuz spacecraft and head back to Earth for a planned landing in Kazakhstan.